Rey is not Luke's daughter. However, I believe he does know of her - perhaps a force adept student that survived Kylo's betrayal. Luke's emotional response at seeing Rey was not just mourning for Han but also of recognition.Rey will be quite adept at the Jedi arts by the time EP8 rolls around. I wouldn't be surprised to see Jedi holocrons used to assist her training, along with multiple force ghost appearances on the Island.Some major event/mcguffin will call both Luke & Rey out of exile.Benicio Del Toro may be employed by The First Order to track down Luke/Rey. He may command the Death Watch or at the very least be a bounty hunter of some type.We will finally see Snoke on the Sith homeworld. He'll be imposing but more like 7-8' tall. He will be revealed as Darth Plagueis in EP9. Kylo will have completed his training, be even more powerful, however he will still be conflicted/unstable and his obsession with Vader even moreso. It was a deliberate move to leave his mask behind. He will have a new design possibly even a new lightsabre.We will get a much clearer explanation of his backstory and the events surrounding his turn at the hands of Snoke. This opens the possibility of a small flashback cameo for Han Solo but I don't think so.Chewie will be captain of the Millennium Falcon with Finn as co-pilot. 3PO and R2 will no doubt be part of the crew. They will also be searching for Rey. This will no doubt bring them into contact the Del Toro character at some point.I'm not sure where Leia, Poe and BB-8 fit in at this stage? With The First Order out for revenge and fixated on hunting down the Resistance, perhaps they are assigned to locate a suitable planet for a secret base. It's possibly General Leia is captured at some point and this is the catalyst for Luke/Rey to leave the Island?I'm not sure if we're meant to believe the Republic has been completely wiped out? The Hosian system is obliterated but we may once again see Coruscant. I believe Chandrilla is also a Republic stronghold. I expect more scenes and a little backstory on the major Rebellion characters - Mothma, Ackbar, Madine etc - and how the Resistance was started.Will the death of Han Solo see the return of Lando Calrissian? Unsure but certainly a possibility. He may team up with Chewi, Finn and the droids.No more death stars/star forges/starkiller bases etc in EP8.Limbs will be lost. Rey and/or Kylo will lose an arm. Nailed on. FACT!By the movies end, and mirroring both AOTC and ESB, our heroes will seemingly be in a place of despair. I think we're going to see the demise of another major character as well. I'm hesitant to say Luke, but it's a possibility. He may sacrifice himself - similar to Obiwan - and return as a force ghost in EP9 to help Rey.

These thoughts have been tumbling through my head since opening night so it's good to finally write them down.

What if she is the offspring of one of Luke's now dead students? She is obviously Force-sensitive, so perhaps she was dumped on Jakku for her own safety as her Jedi parents (Luke's students) went off to fight the good fight. They get killed by Kylo Ren and his fellow nasty Knights, and she is left behind to fend for herself.

Maz has existed for a thousand years or more, according to Han. I'm wondering if there was a connection between her and Lor as well.. both of them held key pieces of Luke's lore. Maz the lightsaber and Lor the missing piece of the star map. I wouldn't rule out a connection of Lando with Maz either, given the lightsaber fell from Bespin. It would be really cool if that were the case and Lando makes an appearance in the next chapter. Knowing his old friend and ally Han met his end, I'm sure he would want to pay his respects to Leia

At no time does Kylo Ren address Supreme Leader Snoke as "Master". It is made clear that Kylo is engaged in a teaching/learning relationship with Snoke.. at the end of the movie Snoke tells Hux to collect him so that he can complete his training. But in their own interactions, I mean that of Kylo and Snoke, they never once refer to each other in the traditional Sith/Master/Apprentice way of things. Example:

SNOKE: "There has been an awakening.. have you felt it?"KYLO" "Yes."

Not "Yes, Master". Kylo/Ben tells Han that "the Supreme Leader is wise". But he never addresses him as if he were his "Master" or in any other professional sense, for lack of a better word. Anakin always addressed Obi Wan and Sideous both as Master.

Is this a subtle hint that Snoke is NOT who we are led to believe he is? He doesn't seem all that Force adept either.. he seems to gather most of his intel from Hux and give orders accordingly.

And in that sense, does Kylo Ren believe that Darth Vader, his Grandfather, is his true Master? And believes that he is speaking to him through the Force? That scene with Vader's mask lends credence to his belief that he is connected with him in some form

Good speculation there from the OP. FWIW I think Rey will be known to Luke, possibly as his daughter but if not then as a young Padawan from his academy. It would make some sense of the backstory of the other films to have her as his daughter - with Kylo Ren and her both as descendants of Anakin they truly would reflect balance in the Force, good and light, male and female.

I think that Phasma will hunt down and captured Finn at Ren's instructions. we'll see something similar to Vader's tactics in episode 5 - torturing friends and loved ones to lure the Jedi-to-be out into the open, in this case Rey. I would not be surprised in Snoke is Plagueis as it would join the entire series of films and having told the story of Plagueis 60 or so years previously the character seems somewhat redundant. It would be a great twist in the overall story of the films.

I would also expect hope to be lost at the end of this film - it's the end of the middle sequence, a point of no return in the story.

I had a dream... Rey was a very powerful force youngling, displayed too much power for Luke to handle... he flips, and strands her on a desert planet hoping to never hear from her again. Kylo betrays him... I think Rey will go bad and this story is about the redemption of Ben Skywalker, following his story. Rey is no relation. Luke saw her, knows who she is, figures he may as well train her since there is no such thing as coincidence and that the force put her in his path.

I re-read some of Michael Kaminski's The Secret History of Star Wars today, specifically the section on the sequel trilogy and the vague clues it mentions.

From reviewing this info, it could be possible through both VIII & IX that...

- Ray will become/is "the other", with Leia being a misinterpretation of this statement. It seems Lucas' original outlines, as supported by comments from Gary Kurtz, had "the other" first appearing in VIII from the other side of the Galaxy.

- Ray will be revealed as Kenobi's Granddaughter in VIII (this is my guess). I recall Daisy saying her Heritage is "implied" in TFA - this could be why she heard Obi-Wan in the vision sequence. - So a Kenobi actually hands Anakin's saber back to Luke - irony and ring theory in effect.

- This is why a Kenobi movie has not been discussed in detail - still need to flesh out his details with Rey for 8 and 9.

- Lucas stated the sequel trilogy is about moral choices and consequences - I read this as being about legacy - the legacy of Anakin and Kenobi's choices which leads to their own grandchildren engaging in combat - again it's a Skywalker (Kylo) vs. a Kenobi (Rey).

- Luke is now the Obi-Wan figure ala episode 4 - but now an elder Skywalker returns the favor and trains a young Kenobi - with the possibility of Rey (Kenobi) succeeding in turning Kylo (Skywalker) back to the light, so Rey succeeds where Obi-Wan failed.

- Jakku is very important because something is underground that is Sith related - see the aftermath books. This is why Jakku is the site of the last battle between the rebellion and the empire - but we don't yet know why. So Rey was hidden "above a dark side power keg".

- The final battle with Snoke - who I believe is as close to the offspring of Palpatine as we will get (he was Snoke's father figure), will either take place in whatever is underground on Jakku, or possibly in Vader's castle on Mustafar.

- You might even see Palpatine, Dooku and Maul conjured up ala the nightsisters and Yoda, Obi, Anakin and Qui-Gon appear at will for the final battle in IX.

- I don't think Snoke wants another Vader in Kylo, I think he wants to wipe out the Skywalker line because they killed Palpatine/Sideous. Snoke is now like Luke in V and VI, but wants to avenge Palatine, not redeem anyone. He's using Kylo in this way.

-I think Finn will end up being force-sensitive ala leia at the end of jedi. This explains why he "snapped out of his programming" at the Jakku massacre and Kylo gave him a look - This was part of the awakening that Kylo and Snoke felt.

- The story of the lightsaber falling in Maz' hands will be fleshed out in an animated show. I would not be surprised if Ahsoka finds it and hands it off to Maz at some point. She may also possibly aid Obi-Wan with his own daughter in that story.

-We don't know who Obi-Wan had a child with (my bet is Duchess Satine), But Rey will be his Child's Child (Granddaughter).

This is my guess.

Also, If they do X - XII, you will move back to droid armies and clones, but the First Order will have a evil Clone Army because of the "Finn incident" in VII, and the Resistance will use a heroic Droid Army to save lives and appease a Republic that is sick of war - ring theory, but full reversal - I.E. -the more things change, the more they stay the same.

I foresee Rey being Luke's daughter... and the real villain is yet to be revealed...

Even after my first viewing of TFA I was quite convinced she is NOT Luke's daughter.

There's some nice speculation here.

As of now I am onboard with the Kenobi/Rey lineage and I firmly believe Rian Johnson is going to delve deeply into the mythology and perhaps put a twist on some aspects of the force we take for granted - particularly in regards to the dark side and the Unknown Regions which they are starting to pepper into canon.

I'm not a huge fan of Obi-Wan having children/grandchildren, but it's a theory that makes an awful lot of sense. Could Ben, in exile on Tatooine, have fathered a child with some local farmer woman, and that farmer woman would someday give birth to Rey? Not unreasonable.

How old is Rey, 20? And how many years after ANH does TFA take place??

Not likely to be Kenobi's unless he was laying pipe as a force ghost.

She's a Skywalker

Iam certain too. She has Flying skills like Luke, is a mechanic like Anakin and uses the force with pure instinct like both of them did. If she's not a Skywalker all those trades in Ep VII where placed pointless...

I still believe that something dramatic and unprecedented for a Star Wars film needs to happen for this trilogy to be simultaneously fresh, and tell a story in keeping with operatic themes the Skywalker narrative. In my eyes, the success or failure of the ST will come down to how they deal with Rey and Snoke.

Regarding Rey:

- If she's Luke's kid it'll make sense from a power-level perspective and will be consistent with previous trilogies where the protagonist is a Skywalker. However, it'll be criticized as expected, boring and tired.- If she's related to Obi-wan (granddaughter, etc) you'll have narrative consistency where a Kenobi is a key character in all the films, and it'll mirror the OT (and PT) well. It will also require a massive retcon somewhere and I'm generally not a fan of those.- If she's related to Palpatine you get an OT-like twist where the hero is the offspring of the villain, which could be interesting (it's possible for good to be born from absolute evil). It would make sense why Rey was abandoned on Jakku (whoever left her there was trying to protect the galaxy from potential evil) but will also require a retcon.- If she's from a new family without any ties to characters or events from the previous Star Wars movies, it would broaden the universe so that "anyone" could be a Jedi and be the hero. The fate of galactic events wouldn't be tied to a single family's success or failure. I believe this would be a grand betrayal of the entire saga to date since it is, at its core, a story about families. It would also fail to explain Rey's great power unless they went down the next path. - If she's a new "chosen one" or "virgin birth" archetype it'll be tired and remind people too much of the PT (which Lucasfilm is actively trying not to do). I do not think they will go this route.

Regarding Snoke:

Whether he's a brand new character, or linked to previously known characters, a lot of work will need to be done for us to embrace him as a worthy successor to Palpatine's villainy. There was nothing about the way Snoke was portrayed in TFA that made him appear as anything more than a superficial evil guy. He was neither a mastermind puppet master or an intimidating force. The narrative problem they've boxed themselves in here is that clearly Snoke was an important enough figure that he cares about resurrecting the Empire, but his not being part of previous movies will require a retcon that feels like a big cheat. It will also diminish the events of 1-6 (the entire premise of the ST has that problem, quite frankly). "We know the chosen one defeated the biggest threat the galaxy has seen in an entire millennia BUT NOW - 30 YEARS LATER - WE'VE GOT SOMETHING EVEN WORSE!" I honestly do not know how they solve for Snoke. His mere existence might be proof that TFA was a soft reboot that will require 10-12 to tell a complete arc.

In my perfect world, Rey turns to the dark side in VIII and kills Snoke. She becomes an absolute monster. It's a massive twist and fans everywhere shit their pants. Kylo Ren flips sides after Leia's death in Episode VIII, which has the reverse effect on him that his father's did in TFA. This sets up a showdown for Episode IX involving Luke, Rey and Ben Solo.

This might be a minor point, but I'm trying to rationalize Obi-Wan having a kid.

"I was once a Jedi Knight, same as your father." - his line to Luke in ANH.

His past-tense language explicitly states he no longer considers himself a Jedi Knight. How long has he considered himself to not be one? From the moment he gave Luke to Beru? Assuming that, perhaps he no longer felt himself obligated to certain Jedi rules, like

Then again, the Jedi forbid attachment, which doesn't necessarily include sex I suppose. Would the films make that distinction?

If Rey is a Kenobi, the Obi-Wan film just found itself an interesting little plot.

- If she's related to Palpatine you get an OT-like twist where the hero is the offspring of the villain, which could be interesting (it's possible for good to be born from absolute evil). It would make sense why Rey was abandoned on Jakku (whoever left her there was trying to protect the galaxy from potential evil) but will also require a retcon.

.....

In my perfect world, Rey turns to the dark side in VIII and kills Snoke. She becomes an absolute monster. It's a massive twist and fans everywhere shit their pants. Kylo Ren flips sides after Leia's death in Episode VIII, which has the reverse effect on him that his father's did in TFA. This sets up a showdown for Episode IX involving Luke, Rey and Ben Solo.

It's conceivable that Palpatine has offspring given that Lucas gave him a "girlfriend" in Underworld. If Rey Palaptine turns evil and Ben Solo turns good, the ST's message is that your heredity determines your fate. I don't like that message.

Overall, I still wonder if episodes VII and IX were plotted-out in detail when Abrams and Kasdan wrote the Episode VII script.

I still believe that something dramatic and unprecedented for a Star Wars film needs to happen for this trilogy to be simultaneously fresh, and tell a story in keeping with operatic themes the Skywalker narrative. In my eyes, the success or failure of the ST will come down to how they deal with Rey and Snoke.

Regarding Rey:

- If she's Luke's kid it'll make sense from a power-level perspective and will be consistent with previous trilogies where the protagonist is a Skywalker. However, it'll be criticized as expected, boring and tired.- If she's related to Obi-wan (granddaughter, etc) you'll have narrative consistency where a Kenobi is a key character in all the films, and it'll mirror the OT (and PT) well. It will also require a massive retcon somewhere and I'm generally not a fan of those.- If she's related to Palpatine you get an OT-like twist where the hero is the offspring of the villain, which could be interesting (it's possible for good to be born from absolute evil). It would make sense why Rey was abandoned on Jakku (whoever left her there was trying to protect the galaxy from potential evil) but will also require a retcon.- If she's from a new family without any ties to characters or events from the previous Star Wars movies, it would broaden the universe so that "anyone" could be a Jedi and be the hero. The fate of galactic events wouldn't be tied to a single family's success or failure. I believe this would be a grand betrayal of the entire saga to date since it is, at its core, a story about families. It would also fail to explain Rey's great power unless they went down the next path. - If she's a new "chosen one" or "virgin birth" archetype it'll be tired and remind people too much of the PT (which Lucasfilm is actively trying not to do). I do not think they will go this route.

Regarding Snoke:

Whether he's a brand new character, or linked to previously known characters, a lot of work will need to be done for us to embrace him as a worthy successor to Palpatine's villainy. There was nothing about the way Snoke was portrayed in TFA that made him appear as anything more than a superficial evil guy. He was neither a mastermind puppet master or an intimidating force. The narrative problem they've boxed themselves in here is that clearly Snoke was an important enough figure that he cares about resurrecting the Empire, but his not being part of previous movies will require a retcon that feels like a big cheat. It will also diminish the events of 1-6 (the entire premise of the ST has that problem, quite frankly). "We know the chosen one defeated the biggest threat the galaxy has seen in an entire millennia BUT NOW - 30 YEARS LATER - WE'VE GOT SOMETHING EVEN WORSE!" I honestly do not know how they solve for Snoke. His mere existence might be proof that TFA was a soft reboot that will require 10-12 to tell a complete arc.

In my perfect world, Rey turns to the dark side in VIII and kills Snoke. She becomes an absolute monster. It's a massive twist and fans everywhere shit their pants. Kylo Ren flips sides after Leia's death in Episode VIII, which has the reverse effect on him that his father's did in TFA. This sets up a showdown for Episode IX involving Luke, Rey and Ben Solo.

Hyperbole alert: Would be the laziest reveal in cinematic history if she turns out to be Luke or Han's long lost daughter. You would have to retcon TFA if this was the case.

I do agree the ST is hinging on the Rey/Snoke back stories to create an intriguing story to make the saga films relevant. It's official canon that Snoke was around to witness the birth and destruction of the Empire, so even for him to be some new evil character who lurked in the shadows of the OT is really on the nose. We have to have some connection to him imo (Plagueis/Porkins/whoever etc). It could involve the Unknown Regions and his and Palpatine's obsession in exploring the origins of the dark side?

Rey's parentage falls into the same category. Daisy Ridley seems to think it's obvious from watching TFA who her parents are, yet JJ is quoted as saying her parents are not in the film. Once again I feel she needs to be connected/related to someone/something we are familiar with (just not Luke or Leia).

I'm confident that Rian Johnson will come up with a plausible outcome on both counts. Something that will blow us away. From all accounts he has written a great story, great enough that LFL have allowed him to script EP9 as well.

Not seeing Luke and Leia on screen together would be a bit of a bummer, but I think they can write around her confrontation with Kylo Ren. Her death could even have a potentially strong impact on his character arc.

I trust Rian Johnson to handle his shit, but he's not writing Episode 9. Colin Trevorrow and Derek Connolly, the flunkies from Jurassic World, are writing 9. I don't trust anyone involved in that dumpster fire.

I foresee Rey being Luke's daughter... and the real villain is yet to be revealed...

Even after my first viewing of TFA I was quite convinced she is NOT Luke's daughter.

There's some nice speculation here.

As of now I am onboard with the Kenobi/Rey lineage and I firmly believe Rian Johnson is going to delve deeply into the mythology and perhaps put a twist on some aspects of the force we take for granted - particularly in regards to the dark side and the Unknown Regions which they are starting to pepper into canon.

Rey being Luke's daugter is the most practical/simplest way to deal with it, and it keeps those family connections relevant (which has always been at the very heart of Star Wars). Rey being the offspring of Obi-Wan just seems a bit bizarre and too complicated for its own good. She's obviously too young to be Obi-Wan's daughter, and being his granddaughter requires a leap that would be problematic to support in simple exposition. "Oh you're the daughter of parents we never knew existed, the father was the offspring of Obi-Wan Kenobi, a Jedi Knight whom we never knew had children".

We don’t normally respond to fan or press speculation, but there is a rumor circulating that we would like to address. We want to assure our fans that Lucasfilm has no plans to digitally recreate Carrie Fisher’s performance as Princess or General Leia Organa.

Carrie Fisher was, is, and always will be a part of the Lucasfilm family. She was our princess, our general, and more importantly, our friend. We are still hurting from her loss. We cherish her memory and legacy as Princess Leia, and will always strive to honor everything she gave to Star Wars.

Rey being Luke's daugter is the most practical/simplest way to deal with it, and it keeps those family connections relevant (which has always been at the very heart of Star Wars). Rey being the offspring of Obi-Wan just seems a bit bizarre and too complicated for its own good. She's obviously too young to be Obi-Wan's daughter, and being his granddaughter requires a leap that would be problematic to support in simple exposition. "Oh you're the daughter of parents we never knew existed, the father was the offspring of Obi-Wan Kenobi, a Jedi Knight whom we never knew had children".

hmm I don't really want "practical/simple" answers to a question posed to be a major reveal - because lets face it that is how it is set up. If they wanted her to be Luke's daughter they would have just played it into TFA, not make us wait 2 years to completely underwhelm us. "Not so long ago I thought you were a myth, but now you're actually my Dad. Oops..My bad"

According to Colin Trevorrow we will get a "profoundly satisfying" reveal on Rey's parents.

It's not to say I am setting myself 100% for a Kenobi connection, but I do feel it's a better option than making her Luke or Han/Leia's. My ideal scenario would be for Rian Johnson to blow the doors off the mythology with some deep cuts into the lore and surprise everyone. We'll see..

hmm I don't really want "practical/simple" answers to a question posed to be a major reveal - because lets face it that is how it is set up. If they wanted her to be Luke's daughter they would have just played it into TFA, not make us wait 2 years to completely underwhelm us. "Not so long ago I thought you were a myth, but now you're actually my Dad. Oops..My bad"

According to Colin Trevorrow we will get a "profoundly satisfying" reveal on Rey's parents.

It's not to say I am setting myself 100% for a Kenobi connection, but I do feel it's a better option than making her Luke or Han/Leia's. My ideal scenario would be for Rian Johnson to blow the doors off the mythology with some deep cuts into the lore and surprise everyone. We'll see..

[/quote]I'm not sure about that... Luke's lineage wasn't revealed until TESB. Why the requirement for it to be revealed in The Force Awakens if Rey were Luke's daughter? I'm not sure everything needs to be explained within the same film... and it not being revealed in TFA isn't evidence that the relationship won't be revealed. We already had the Kylo Ren/Ben Solo reveal, so there's certainly logic for not spelling it out in TFA (if indeed they are father and daughter). And it's of course somewhat subjective, because Rey being Obi-Wan's granddaughter sounds massively underwhelming and narratively impractical to me...

I'm certainly open to Rey not being Luke's child, but her being Luke's creates a direct connection between her, Luke, Kylo, Han/Leia and of course Vader. That's usually the basis of good drama, drama driven by conflict/relationships with existing characters rather than backfilling relationships with characters no longer present. And again, I'm certainly open for the filmmakers to do something profoundly 'left field' with Rey's lineage, but other than her being Palp's daughter or Vader's hidden test tube daughter, I'm not sure where else they can go that keeps the 'family' dynamic at the heart of Star Wars.

For me, and this is just my opinion, a few decent images/scenes does not a good film make. I certainly thought it was a competently made action/popcorn film, but (for me) it neither really furthered the narrative or added to the original premise, other than dinosaurs being trained/used by the military (which is an increasing fall back trope for action/science fiction films films). Jurassic World (much like TFA) felt much more like an exercise in keeping a franchise going (for better or worse) rather than actually having something new to say or show in terms of cinematic language.

Given your post history, it seems that not much, in your book, makes for a good film.

I think, we, as a fandom (scifi/fantasy/whatever) need to take a big step back and not take movies about Dinosaurs being recreated so serious. You can substitute Star Wars/Trek, Dystopian futures, etc.

Were you entertained? Turn your brain off and escape from reality for a while.

Stop over-analyzing the world and enjoy it.

This is coming from a guy with Aspergers, who doesn't really under the concept of not analyzing, but you all take this shit way too serious.

Given your post history, it seems that not much, in your book, makes for a good film.

I think, we, as a fandom (scifi/fantasy/whatever) need to take a big step back and not take movies about Dinosaurs being recreated so serious. You can substitute Star Wars/Trek, Dystopian futures, etc.

Were you entertained? Turn your brain off and escape from reality for a while.

Stop over-analyzing the world and enjoy it.

This is coming from a guy with Aspergers, who doesn't really under the concept of not analyzing, but you all take this shit way too serious.

Don't confuse "over analysing" with simply having a personal criteria for determining what constitutes good/bad... otherwise there would be no delineation between The Empire Strikes Back and Suicide Squad or Raiders of the Lost Ark and Assassins Creed. It's also probably worth noting that we're posting on a dedicated fan forum board, so of course there is some modicum of analysis (or emotional investment in the subject matter)... certainly more so than if we were just having a conversation at the coffee machine at work.

I was bored by Jurrasic World if truth be known, so no, I wasn't particularly "entertained". It was just a vastly inferior version of the original, with no more creative/cinematic merit (or entertainment value) than Jaws 3D or an Underworld sequel. I certainly don't believe Jurassic World to be the worst offender, in terms of poor, by the numbers' Hollywood action movies, but it's still a suitable example of where Hollywood would sooner invest millions of $$$ into creatively moribund reboots/sequels rather than investing in something new. That the film simply exists isn't enough reason for me to believe it has merit. Does the film keep me awake at nights? Nope. Am I going to spend my waking hours hunting down Trevorrow and his financial masters? Nope. Do I believe Jurassic World was/is nothing more than a lazy attempt to squeeze more cash out of a franchise past its sell by date? Yep. I believe my position is reasonable...

What if she is the offspring of one of Luke's now dead students? She is obviously Force-sensitive, so perhaps she was dumped on Jakku for her own safety as her Jedi parents (Luke's students) went off to fight the good fight. They get killed by Kylo Ren and his fellow nasty Knights, and she is left behind to fend for herself.

The possibilities are limitless.

I'm right there with you Bander. If we are to go with RaeLo (or whatever) as a great love story, then Rae OBVIOUSLY cannot be Luke's daughter. Further, if the main movies are to be the Skywalker Family Saga, there must be a love interest for the featured Skywalker to continue in the family way. They (accidentally?) did the relative-as-love-interest with Luke/Leia, and I don't think we will see THAT again. <COUGH>

If, indeed, Rae is also a Skywalker ... who else would she fall in love with? Finn? Po? BB-8? I suspect all three are the wrong gender. Phasma would be cool, but I am rooting for Kylo Skywalker + Rae Palpatine. They can fall in love and have a Force-Crossed love/fight relationship of epic proportions. I think we were denied something like that when the Ventress/Voz arc was dropped from TCW. "I go to the dark side, you pull me back. You go to the dark side, I pull YOU out." Love is sorta like that anyways, right fellas?

It does make sense that Rae (aka Kira?) was dropped off on Jakku for safety and then had to fend for herself as you suggest. That feels true.

Rey is not Luke's daughter. However, I believe he does know of her - perhaps a force adept student that survived Kylo's betrayal. Luke's emotional response at seeing Rey was not just mourning for Han but also of recognition.Rey will be quite adept at the Jedi arts by the time EP8 rolls around. I wouldn't be surprised to see Jedi holocrons used to assist her training, along with multiple force ghost appearances on the Island.Some major event/mcguffin will call both Luke & Rey out of exile.Benicio Del Toro may be employed by The First Order to track down Luke/Rey. He may command the Death Watch or at the very least be a bounty hunter of some type.We will finally see Snoke on the Sith homeworld. He'll be imposing but more like 7-8' tall. He will be revealed as Darth Plagueis in EP9. Kylo will have completed his training, be even more powerful, however he will still be conflicted/unstable and his obsession with Vader even moreso. It was a deliberate move to leave his mask behind. He will have a new design possibly even a new lightsabre.We will get a much clearer explanation of his backstory and the events surrounding his turn at the hands of Snoke. This opens the possibility of a small flashback cameo for Han Solo but I don't think so.Chewie will be captain of the Millennium Falcon with Finn as co-pilot. 3PO and R2 will no doubt be part of the crew. They will also be searching for Rey. This will no doubt bring them into contact the Del Toro character at some point.I'm not sure where Leia, Poe and BB-8 fit in at this stage? With The First Order out for revenge and fixated on hunting down the Resistance, perhaps they are assigned to locate a suitable planet for a secret base. It's possibly General Leia is captured at some point and this is the catalyst for Luke/Rey to leave the Island?I'm not sure if we're meant to believe the Republic has been completely wiped out? The Hosian system is obliterated but we may once again see Coruscant. I believe Chandrilla is also a Republic stronghold. I expect more scenes and a little backstory on the major Rebellion characters - Mothma, Ackbar, Madine etc - and how the Resistance was started.Will the death of Han Solo see the return of Lando Calrissian? Unsure but certainly a possibility. He may team up with Chewi, Finn and the droids.No more death stars/star forges/starkiller bases etc in EP8.Limbs will be lost. Rey and/or Kylo will lose an arm. Nailed on. FACT!By the movies end, and mirroring both AOTC and ESB, our heroes will seemingly be in a place of despair. I think we're going to see the demise of another major character as well. I'm hesitant to say Luke, but it's a possibility. He may sacrifice himself - similar to Obiwan - and return as a force ghost in EP9 to help Rey.

These thoughts have been tumbling through my head since opening night so it's good to finally write them down.

Well some were spot on - others not so..

All the crap I've had to listen to about Rey being a Skywalker for the last 2 years is finally over !!